Ponte Tresa
Encyclopedia
Ponte Tresa is a municipality
in the district of Lugano
in the canton
of Ticino
in Switzerland
.
The history of the town is closely tied to the Tresa
river crossing, which was first mentioned in 590 by Gregory of Tours
. The name of the municipality, and the neighboring, Italian
town of Lavena Ponte Tresa
, both come from the river. From the Middle Ages
until the opening of the Melide dam in 1847, the municipality provided strategically important connections to Italy. Even in the Roman era
there was probably a bridge or a ford across the river near the modern village. During the Middle Ages and into the early modern era
, the bridge was a wooden bridge with stone pillars. Below the bridge there were fish ponds, which were mostly stocked with eel
s that belonged to the Bishop of Milan
. In the 16th Century the bridge was in the possession of local noble families. Until 1828, it remained the property of the de Stoppani family, and then it was purchased by the Canton. The Canton built a new stone bridge in 1846. The current bridge dates from 1962.
At Rocchetta, in the area above the town, lie the ruins of the Comacine masters
castle of S. Martino, which was destroyed in the war between Como
and Milan
(1118–27). During the Middle Ages, Ponte Tresa enjoyed certain responsibilities and privileges in connection with border control, tolls and upkeep on the bridge. The Duke of Milan granted the village a tax exemption, which was confirmed by the Swiss Confederation
in the 15th Century.
The village church belong to the parish
of Lavena Ponte Tresa until 1821 when it became an independent parish. The church of S. Bernardino dates from the 15th Century, and was renovated in 1972-82.
The railway Lugano-Ponte Tresa was inaugurated in 1912.
Ponte Tresa has an area, , of 0.41 square kilometre (0.158301885022939 sq mi). Of this area, 0.14 km² (0.0540543022029549 sq mi) or 34.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 0.18 km² (0.0694983885466563 sq mi) or 43.9% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.19 km² (0.0733594101325817 sq mi) or 46.3% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.03 km² (7.4 acre) or 7.3% is either rivers or lakes.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 31.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 9.8%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 4.9%. Out of the forested land, all of the forested land area is covered with heavy forests. Of the agricultural land, 2.4% is used for growing crops and 31.7% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district, on Lake Lugano
along the Swiss-Italian border, about 12 km (7.5 mi) from Lugano. The neighboring Italian town is called Lavena Ponte Tresa.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Per fess gules and argent, four barrulets azure; resting upon the line of partition a five-arched bridge or, ensigned of a mule sable; swimming in the waters in base three eels sable.
Most of the population speaks Italian
(79.8%), with German
being second most common (13.3%) and French
being third (2.6%). Of the Swiss national languages , 102 speak German, 20 people speak French, 614 people speak Italian
, and 4 people speak Romansh. The remainder (29 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 45.6% male and 54.4% female. The population was made up of 251 Swiss men (31.1% of the population), and 117 (14.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 332 Swiss women (41.1%), and 107 (13.3%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 7 live births to Swiss citizens and 1 birth to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 9 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 2 while the foreign population increased by 1. There was 1 Swiss man and 6 Swiss women who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 11 non-Swiss men and 10 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was a decrease of 9 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 13 people. This represents a population growth rate of 0.5%.
The age distribution, , in Ponte Tresa is; 50 children or 6.2% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 76 teenagers or 9.4% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 60 people or 7.4% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 108 people or 13.4% are between 30 and 39, 154 people or 19.1% are between 40 and 49, and 99 people or 12.3% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 106 people or 13.1% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 99 people or 12.3% are between 70 and 79, there are 55 people or 6.8% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.55 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.6 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43.1 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 26.1% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage
or a rent-to-own agreement).
, there were 373 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2. persons per household. there were 62 single family homes (or 33.9% of the total) out of a total of 183 inhabited buildings. There were 31 two family buildings (16.9%) and 67 multi-family buildings (36.6%). There were also 23 buildings in the municipality that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0.88%. there were 544 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 3 room apartment of which there were 173. There were 37 single room apartments and 78 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 368 apartments (67.6% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 161 apartments (29.6%) were seasonally occupied and 15 apartments (2.8%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 1.2 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Lugano-Ponte Tresa Railway
connects Ponte Tresa with Lugano.
the most popular party was the FDP
which received 43.54% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP
(15.72%), the Ticino League
(13.28%) and the SP
(11.79%). In the federal election, a total of 217 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 42.1%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 524 registered voters in Ponte Tresa, of which 278 or 53.1% voted. 7 blank ballots were cast, leaving 271 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT
which received 105 or 38.7% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the SSI (with 47 or 17.3%), the LEGA
(with 42 or 15.5%) and the PPD
+GenGiova (with 28 or 10.3%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 7 blank ballots and 1 null ballot were cast, leaving 270 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 109 or 40.4% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 55 or 20.4%), the SSI (with 41 or 15.2%) and the PPD (with 26 or 9.6%).
, there were 328 workers who commuted into the municipality and 250 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.3 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 20.1% of the workforce coming into Ponte Tresa are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 16% used public transportation to get to work, and 55.7% used a private car.
, there were 2 hotels in Ponte Tresa.
. There are 81 individuals (or about 10.53% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 24 individuals (or about 3.12% of the population) did not answer the question.
. The wettest month is May during which time Ponte Tresa receives an average of 226 mm (8.9 in) of rain. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 13.4 days. The driest month of the year is December with an average of 70 mm (2.8 in) of precipitation over 5.8 days.
).
In Ponte Tresa there were a total of 112 students . The Ticino education system
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
and in Ponte Tresa there were 16 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 23 students attended the standard primary schools. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two year middle school followed by a two year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four year program to prepare for higher education. There were 25 students in the two year middle school, while 17 students were in the four year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 11 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 18 who attend part-time.
The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields. There were 2 students in the professional program.
, there were 4 students in Ponte Tresa who came from another municipality, while 55 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Municipalities of Switzerland
Communes , also known as municipalities, are the smallest government division in Switzerland, numbering 2,596 . While many have a population of a few hundred citizens, the largest cities such as Zürich or Geneva also have the legal status of municipalities...
in the district of Lugano
Lugano (district)
The district of Lugano is a district of Canton Ticino, Switzerland. It has a population of .-Geography:The Lugano District has an area, , of . Of this area, or 15.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 66.5% is forested...
in the canton
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
of Ticino
Ticino
Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland. Named after the Ticino river, it is the only canton in which Italian is the sole official language...
in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
History
Ponte Tresa is first mentioned in 818 as ad Tresiae Pontem, though this comes from a 12th Century copy of the earlier document. In 875 it was mentioned as Ponte Tretia. In German it was known as Treisbruck, though this name is no longer used.The history of the town is closely tied to the Tresa
Tresa
The river Tresa leaves Lake Lugano at a point between Lavena Ponte Tresa in Italy and Ponte Tresa in Switzerland and flows into Lake Maggiore near Luino, a few hundred metres after joining the Margorabbia...
river crossing, which was first mentioned in 590 by Gregory of Tours
Gregory of Tours
Saint Gregory of Tours was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of Gaul. He was born Georgius Florentius, later adding the name Gregorius in honour of his maternal great-grandfather...
. The name of the municipality, and the neighboring, Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
town of Lavena Ponte Tresa
Lavena Ponte Tresa
Lavena Ponte Tresa is a comune on Lake Lugano in the Province of Varese in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 60 km northwest of Milan and about 15 km north of Varese, on the border with Switzerland...
, both come from the river. From the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
until the opening of the Melide dam in 1847, the municipality provided strategically important connections to Italy. Even in the Roman era
Switzerland in the Roman era
The history of Switzerland in the Roman era encompasses the roughly six centuries during which the territory of modern Switzerland was a part of the Roman Republic and Empire...
there was probably a bridge or a ford across the river near the modern village. During the Middle Ages and into the early modern era
Early Modern Switzerland
The early modern history of the Old Swiss Confederacy , lasting from formal independence in 1648 to the French invasion of 1798 came to be referred as Ancien Régime retrospectively, in post-Napoleonic Switzerland.The early modern period was characterized by an increasingly...
, the bridge was a wooden bridge with stone pillars. Below the bridge there were fish ponds, which were mostly stocked with eel
Eel
Eels are an order of fish, which consists of four suborders, 20 families, 111 genera and approximately 800 species. Most eels are predators...
s that belonged to the Bishop of Milan
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan
The Archdiocese of Milan is a metropolitan see of the Catholic Church in Italy. It has long maintained its own rite: the Ambrosian rite. It is led by the Archbishop of Milan who serves as metropolitan to the dioceses of Bergamo, Brescia, Como, Crema, Cremona, Lodi, Mantova, Pavia, and Vigevano.The...
. In the 16th Century the bridge was in the possession of local noble families. Until 1828, it remained the property of the de Stoppani family, and then it was purchased by the Canton. The Canton built a new stone bridge in 1846. The current bridge dates from 1962.
At Rocchetta, in the area above the town, lie the ruins of the Comacine masters
Comacine masters
The early medieval Lombard Comacine masters were stonemasons working in a region of excellent building stone who gave to Lombardy its preeminence in the stone architecture that preceded Romanesque style.-Comacini:...
castle of S. Martino, which was destroyed in the war between Como
Como
Como is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy.It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como....
and Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
(1118–27). During the Middle Ages, Ponte Tresa enjoyed certain responsibilities and privileges in connection with border control, tolls and upkeep on the bridge. The Duke of Milan granted the village a tax exemption, which was confirmed by the Swiss Confederation
Old Swiss Confederacy
The Old Swiss Confederacy was the precursor of modern-day Switzerland....
in the 15th Century.
The village church belong to the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of Lavena Ponte Tresa until 1821 when it became an independent parish. The church of S. Bernardino dates from the 15th Century, and was renovated in 1972-82.
The railway Lugano-Ponte Tresa was inaugurated in 1912.
Geography
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 31.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 9.8%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 4.9%. Out of the forested land, all of the forested land area is covered with heavy forests. Of the agricultural land, 2.4% is used for growing crops and 31.7% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district, on Lake Lugano
Lake Lugano
Lake Lugano is a glacial lake in the south-east of Switzerland, at the border between Switzerland and Italy. The lake, named after the city of Lugano, is situated between Lake Como and Lago Maggiore...
along the Swiss-Italian border, about 12 km (7.5 mi) from Lugano. The neighboring Italian town is called Lavena Ponte Tresa.
Coat of arms
The blazonBlazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
of the municipal coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
is Per fess gules and argent, four barrulets azure; resting upon the line of partition a five-arched bridge or, ensigned of a mule sable; swimming in the waters in base three eels sable.
Demographics
Ponte Tresa has a population of . , 27.3% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 3.5%.Most of the population speaks Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
(79.8%), with German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
being second most common (13.3%) and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
being third (2.6%). Of the Swiss national languages , 102 speak German, 20 people speak French, 614 people speak Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, and 4 people speak Romansh. The remainder (29 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 45.6% male and 54.4% female. The population was made up of 251 Swiss men (31.1% of the population), and 117 (14.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 332 Swiss women (41.1%), and 107 (13.3%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 7 live births to Swiss citizens and 1 birth to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 9 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 2 while the foreign population increased by 1. There was 1 Swiss man and 6 Swiss women who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 11 non-Swiss men and 10 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was a decrease of 9 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 13 people. This represents a population growth rate of 0.5%.
The age distribution, , in Ponte Tresa is; 50 children or 6.2% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 76 teenagers or 9.4% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 60 people or 7.4% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 108 people or 13.4% are between 30 and 39, 154 people or 19.1% are between 40 and 49, and 99 people or 12.3% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 106 people or 13.1% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 99 people or 12.3% are between 70 and 79, there are 55 people or 6.8% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.55 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.6 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43.1 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 26.1% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage
Mortgage loan
A mortgage loan is a loan secured by real property through the use of a mortgage note which evidences the existence of the loan and the encumbrance of that realty through the granting of a mortgage which secures the loan...
or a rent-to-own agreement).
, there were 373 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2. persons per household. there were 62 single family homes (or 33.9% of the total) out of a total of 183 inhabited buildings. There were 31 two family buildings (16.9%) and 67 multi-family buildings (36.6%). There were also 23 buildings in the municipality that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0.88%. there were 544 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 3 room apartment of which there were 173. There were 37 single room apartments and 78 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 368 apartments (67.6% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 161 apartments (29.6%) were seasonally occupied and 15 apartments (2.8%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 1.2 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Transportation
The metre gaugeMetre gauge
Metre gauge refers to narrow gauge railways and tramways with a track gauge of . In some African, American and Asian countries it is the main gauge. In Europe it has been used for local railways in France, Germany, and Belgium, most of which were closed down in mid 20th century. Only in Switzerland...
Lugano-Ponte Tresa Railway
Ferrovia Lugano-Ponte Tresa
The Lugano–Ponte Tresa Railway is a local railway line in Canton Ticino in Switzerland. The line links the town of Lugano with Ponte Tresa, and is long. It has a gauge of , and is electrified on the overhead system at 1200 volts DC.The FLP is the last working line of a network of three...
connects Ponte Tresa with Lugano.
Politics
In the 2007 federal electionSwiss federal election, 2007
Elections to the Swiss Federal Assembly, the federal parliament of Switzerland, were held on Sunday, 21 October 2007. In a few cantons, a second round of the elections to the Council of States was held on 11 November, 18 November, and 25 November 2007...
the most popular party was the FDP
FDP.The Liberals
FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
which received 43.54% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
(15.72%), the Ticino League
Ticino League
The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...
(13.28%) and the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(11.79%). In the federal election, a total of 217 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
Voter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
was 42.1%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 524 registered voters in Ponte Tresa, of which 278 or 53.1% voted. 7 blank ballots were cast, leaving 271 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT
FDP.The Liberals
FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
which received 105 or 38.7% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the SSI (with 47 or 17.3%), the LEGA
Ticino League
The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...
(with 42 or 15.5%) and the PPD
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
+GenGiova (with 28 or 10.3%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 7 blank ballots and 1 null ballot were cast, leaving 270 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 109 or 40.4% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 55 or 20.4%), the SSI (with 41 or 15.2%) and the PPD (with 26 or 9.6%).
Economy
, Ponte Tresa had an unemployment rate of 5.4%. , there were people employed in the primary economic sector and about businesses involved in this sector. 34 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 5 businesses in this sector. 235 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 56 businesses in this sector. There were 332 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 44.3% of the workforce., there were 328 workers who commuted into the municipality and 250 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.3 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 20.1% of the workforce coming into Ponte Tresa are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 16% used public transportation to get to work, and 55.7% used a private car.
, there were 2 hotels in Ponte Tresa.
Religion
From the , 605 or 78.7% were Roman Catholic, while 59 or 7.7% belonged to the Swiss Reformed ChurchSwiss Reformed Church
The Reformed branch of Protestantism in Switzerland was started in Zürich by Huldrych Zwingli and spread within a few years to Basel , Bern , St...
. There are 81 individuals (or about 10.53% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 24 individuals (or about 3.12% of the population) did not answer the question.
Weather
Ponte Tresa has an average of 103.8 days of rain or snow per year and on average receives 1806 mm (71.1 in) of precipitationPrecipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
. The wettest month is May during which time Ponte Tresa receives an average of 226 mm (8.9 in) of rain. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 13.4 days. The driest month of the year is December with an average of 70 mm (2.8 in) of precipitation over 5.8 days.
Education
In Ponte Tresa about 68.7% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a FachhochschuleFachhochschule
A Fachhochschule or University of Applied Sciences is a German type of tertiary education institution, sometimes specialized in certain topical areas . Fachhochschulen were founded in Germany and later adopted by Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Greece...
).
In Ponte Tresa there were a total of 112 students . The Ticino education system
Education in Switzerland
The education system in Switzerland is very diverse, because the constitution of Switzerland delegates the authority for the school system mainly to the cantons...
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
and in Ponte Tresa there were 16 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 23 students attended the standard primary schools. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two year middle school followed by a two year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four year program to prepare for higher education. There were 25 students in the two year middle school, while 17 students were in the four year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 11 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 18 who attend part-time.
The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields. There were 2 students in the professional program.
, there were 4 students in Ponte Tresa who came from another municipality, while 55 residents attended schools outside the municipality.